I'm Right Here
by greektsik13
Summary: The story of Sam and Elizabeth: there's always been an undercurrent of attraction between them, but they've never acted on it until traumatic circumstances push them together. Sam/OC, slight AU for Season9
1. Prologue

**A/N: I started writing this in the Season 9 midseason hiatus, so it is AU from there on at this point. There are mentions of self-harm and eating disorders in the main story. Please don't read if this triggers you. As always, please enjoy!**

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_October 2006 – Set in Season 2_

The fire burns bright for a few minutes before beginning to die down. Despite the crackling of the burning bones, Elizabeth can still hear footsteps approaching. She spins around, trying to determine if the police are coming to arrest her, but it isn't the cops. She whips out her gun and moves out of the firelight, into the shadow, to get a glimpse of whatever is coming at her. Two shadows move into the light, also carrying guns.

"Dean? Dean Winchester?"

One of the shadows lowers his gun and stands up straight. "Who's that?"

Elizabeth steps into the light, the fire highlighting her red hair and gray eyes.

"Liz? Is that you?"

"In the flesh."

Dean motions to the other man to lower his gun, and he relaxes. "Liz, this is my brother."

Elizabeth holds her hand out, "Hello Sam."

Sam shakes her hand looking surprised, "How do you know my name?"

"Dean used to talk about you all the time. You were at Stanford right? He would never shut up about his brilliant baby brother."

Sam turns to look at Dean, eyebrows raised, but Dean deflects by asking Elizabeth what she's doing in the graveyard.

She shoots him a look, "Salting and burning a corpse to get rid of a ghost. That _is_ what you said to do."

"Dammit Liz!" Dean swears, "You were _not_ supposed to start hunting. You were supposed to stay safe."

Elizabeth sighs. "Look this is not a conversation I want to have in a graveyard. Come to my house and I'll make something warm to drink and we can talk."

Dean reluctantly agrees, and thirty minutes later they are all crowded in her tiny kitchen as she makes hot chocolate.

"Alright. No stalling. What the hell are you doing?" Dean demands.

Elizabeth looks him square in the eye before answering. "Do not talk to me that way Dean Winchester. I know how to shoot, and I can get lore. I am still in school, but I hunt part time near here. Bobby, Ellen, and Jo contact me if there's something nearby. In fact, Jo has visited me several times and we are good friends. Now I understand you want me to stay safe, but I'm _not_ going to just sit around when I can be helping people. So do not even think of trying to convince me to stay out of the hunting business."

Dean just opens and closes his mouth, at a loss for what to say. Sam is grinning widely at Dean's dumbfounded expression.

"Now do you guys need a place to spend the night? Because I have a couch and an air mattress," Elizabeth says.

Dean snaps out of his shock. "Oh sweetheart, you aren't gonna let me share your bed?"

Elizabeth smacks him on the head before standing up to take their mugs to the sink. "You aren't allowed in my bed ever again, Dean Winchester."

Dean looks affronted, "Oh come on. It was a great first time!"

Elizabeth smiles softly, "You made my first time wonderful. But you aren't sleeping with me again."

Meanwhile, Sam is making retching noises in the background.

"Aww Sammy, quit being such a girl," Dean says. Suddenly his phone rings and he gets up to take the call, leaving Elizabeth and Sam alone in the kitchen.

"I'll dry if you wash," he offers.

Elizabeth looks up from the sink surprised. "Oh… sure. Thanks."

Sam shrugs and starts drying the first mug. "So uh how did you meet Dean?"

"We met when I was 17, uh 2001 I think. I had started seeing things. I can't exactly describe it, but I saw something on certain people, and then those people died. It turns out that there was a ghost, a 'vengeful spirit' as Dean put it, and I can see into their plane of existence. I'm the seventh daughter of a seventh daughter and apparently I have The Sight. I didn't think it was real when Dean told me at first, but I remembered my grandmother telling me old Irish lore about our family and I guess it made sense."

Sam just nods. They're done with the dishes, but he keeps fiddling with the towel. "Can I, uh, can I ask you something?"

Elizabeth smirks, "You just did. But go ahead."

Sam grins, but then turns serious. "You said you were in college?"

"That's not really a question, but yes. I'm in my first semester of PA school. I just got my bachelor's degree this past spring."

Sam blinks. "Wow congrats! That's a pretty big deal."

Elizabeth just shrugs as she sets up the couch and air mattress. "My dad always says, 'School first, then hunting' and he's helping pay for my tuition, so I listen. He's pretty chill about it."

"Wait, your dad knows? And he's okay with it?"

Elizabeth shoots him a smile, "Yeah he is. He's the one who taught me how to shoot, and he bought me my first gun."

"What about your mom? Is she okay with it?"

Elizabeth's movements falter. "She's dead," she says quietly.

"Oh… I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to – "

"It's fine Sam," Elizabeth cuts him off, "She was driving with my six other siblings coming to pick me up from daycare, and uh there was a drunk driver. All seven of them died. But it's been me and my dad for a while now, so I'm fine."

Sam just nods. Elizabeth starts walking to her room and motions for Sam to join her. He sits on her bed as she cleans her guns and packs away her hunting materials.

"So… I guess, why did you leave college?"

At this, Sam completely shuts down. "My girlfriend, Jess - she uh - she was killed by the same thing that killed our mom. I assume Dean told you about that."

Elizabeth places a hand on Sam's shoulder. "Yes he did. I'm so sorry Sam. I'm sure she was lovely."

Sam wipes at his eyes. "You know it's been almost a year and I still kind of miss her. She was normal, and I could pretend to be normal with her. I just want to find the thing that killed her and mom."

Elizabeth settles next to him on the bed, holding him and carding her fingers through his hair to calm him down. After a few minutes he pulls away and gets up.

"I'm going to sleep now Liz. I'll see you in the morning."

"You know… you could stay here. The air mattress is kind of small."

Sam turns to Elizabeth with wide eyes.

She hastily backtracks. "I mean I just thought if you wanted… but it's fine."

"Just sleep right?"

Elizabeth smiles softly, "Yes, that's all I was offering."

Sam scratches the back of his head. "Well uh if you're offering, sure."

They spend the night on opposite sides of the bed, but Dean takes the opportunity to tease them about it in the morning regardless.

The next morning, Sam and Dean ride off in the Impala after telling Elizabeth to stay safe. Elizabeth hugs Dean goodbye, but blushes awkwardly as she stutters out her goodbye to Sam. He waves goodbye before giving her an awkward hug. And then both boys are gone.

_Late February 2008 – Set in Season 3, before Dean goes to Hell_

"This is Dean Winchester. If this is an emergency, leave a message. If you're calling about 11-2-83, please page me with your coordinates."

"Dammit Dean, pick up your phone. It's Liz. I need your help on a hunt."

Elizabeth hangs up and dials Sam next. Thankfully he picks up.

"Hello? Liz? What's wrong?"

"Why do you assume something is wrong Sam?"

She hears a chuckle on the other end of the line. "_You're_ calling _me_, sweetheart. If someone calls us, that usually means something has gone wrong."

Elizabeth huffs, irritated. "Nothing is wrong. Yet. It's just that the hunt I'm on… I think it might be more than I can handle. I thought it was just one demon, but there are signs that there's at least four."

After telling him where she is, Sam promises that they'll be there within a day. In return, she has to promise not to go after the demons alone. Although she complains, she acquiesces in the end. Precisely 7 hours later, Elizabeth hears the familiar rumble of the Impala's engine as it pulls up to the motel where she is staying. She lets the boys into her room and fills them in on the details. By that point, it's too late, so they decide to start the next day.

"Come on, let's get a room," Dean picks up his jacket.

"Don't be stupid," Elizabeth says, "You can stay with me. Sam and I can share a bed again, unless you two want to share."

Dean looks between Elizabeth and Sam, a grin starting to form. "Nah that's okay kiddos. You can definitely share a bed. Meanwhile I'm going out for a drink. Behave yourselves." He winks at his baby brother.

Sam gives Dean his best bitchface - well the best that he can while blushing. Elizabeth just rolls her eyes as Dean leaves for the bar.

The two get ready for bed, catching up on what each other has been doing. Elizabeth mentions that she will be graduating PA school in a few months, and she's excited to pick up hunting full time. She and Sam fall asleep facing each other.

The next day, Sam wakes up early and takes in Elizabeth's peaceful sleeping face in front of him.

_She's beautiful_, he thinks.

She stirs in her sleep and slowly opens her eyes to see Sam's hazel gaze looking at her.

"What?" she yawns.

"Good morning," Sam whispers.

A slow smile breaks out across her face and Sam thinks it's the most beautiful thing he's seen since – the thought chills him – since Jess and he shared a bed.

"Sam you okay?" Elizabeth notices his change in mood. She reaches out to touch him, but Sam just rolls away.

"I'm fine. I just need to use the bathroom." Sam can't help but notice how rejected she looks as she lets her hand drop to the bed.

When Sam emerges from the bathroom, Elizabeth and Dean are reviewing the plan for today.

"We split up. We each take an entrance and work out way to the middle of the warehouse."

Elizabeth rolls her eyes. "Yes Dean. We went over this like seven times yesterday."

Dean smacks her playfully upside the head. "Oh good Sammy, you're out of the bathroom. Get ready. We need to get going."

Fifteen minutes later, they are all in the Impala on the way to the warehouse on the outskirts of town where the demons are holed up. They split up and go to their separate entrances. Elizabeth walks quietly through the hallways when suddenly she sees a shadow flit past her. She turns to follow it, and then there is a sudden flash of pain before she is knocked unconscious.

Elizabeth wakes up to see Sam tied up across the room, still unconscious. She struggles against the ropes tying her hands to the post above her head, but to no avail. If anything, it attracts the attention of the three demons in the room.

"Oh look, the human bitch is awake." One of the demons caresses her face and she bites its hand. It curses and barks, "Get me a knife."

When one is handed to him, he immediately plunges it into her thigh. Her scream shocks Sam into consciousness.

"Stop!" Sam yells, "Don't do it! Stop! Not to her. You can cut me up instead."

The demon just turns to Sam and grins sadistically before carving into Elizabeth's biceps and forearms. Elizabeth is screaming with pain, and Sam is screaming at the demons to leave her alone, when suddenly all three demons disappear.

Elizabeth is panting, tears streaming down her face.

"Liz, hey Liz, come on look at me," Sam calls, "You're gonna be okay. I promise you. I swear you're gonna get out of this. They haven't caught Dean yet. We'll be okay. You just gotta hold on for me okay?"

Elizabeth can only nod. Suddenly two of the demons were back.

"That damn son of a bitch Winchester. He exorcised Jeffrey and Morgan," one of the demons spat to the other one.

"He just can't take a hint," the other said, "Not that it matters because he'll be in Hell in three months when his deal expires."

Elizabeth can barely process this through the haze of pain before she feels the knife back on her again. She can dimly hear Sam alternately pleading with the demons to stop and giving her encouragement. Suddenly, the pain stops.

"So you're willing to take the knife for her, Winchester? Why? What makes her so special?"

"She doesn't deserve it," Sam replies.

"Oh really? I think there's something more to it. Let's see if she has the same reaction to you being carved up like a turkey on Thanksgiving."

Sam manages to stay quiet for the first few minutes, but even he has a tolerance limit. Soon, his groans and yells fill the chambers.

"No," Elizabeth whispers. "No, stop it. Stop hurting him," she says louder, her vocal cords hoarse from all the screaming.

"Oh look, she does care for you Sammy boy," the demon stops torturing Sam for a moment, "I know, I know, you're probably wondering where Dean is and why he isn't rescuing you. Well I'm afraid he's knocked out at the moment. Jake over there did that after Dean killed Jeffrey. So no one is coming to save you, and I can play with you both as much as I want." And with that, he picked up the knife and stuck it into Sam's side.

Elizabeth closes her eyes at Sam's scream. She has to do something. Suddenly her eyes fly open and she begins chanting under her breath, "_Exorcizamus te, omnis immundus spiritus_…"

"What do you think you're doing you bitch!?" the demon shrieks.

Elizabeth ignores it and keeps reciting the exorcism, ignoring the bursts of pain in her arms and legs where the demon stabs her in an attempt to distract her.

"…_te rogamus, audi nos_." With that, black smoke pours out of the possessed people's bodies, and the demons are exorcised.

Sam looks over at Elizabeth's slumped figure with awe. "Liz, you okay?" when she looks up and nods, he continues, "That was pretty awesome. You recited the whole exorcism without being distracted."

Elizabeth shoots him a wan smile, then suddenly Dean bursts in.

"Shit guys. They knocked me out. Guess they got you guys too."

Dean cuts them free and helps them out to the Impala. The drive back to the motel is spent in silence with Sam holding Elizabeth and trying to soothe the pain. Once at the motel, Dean stitches both Sam and Elizabeth up and lets them fall asleep together.

Elizabeth's dreams are dark and filled with flashbacks of the demons, but one phrase keeps replaying - _he'll be in Hell in three months when his deal expires_. She wakes up to find Sam and Dean talking softly. She clears her throat and they turn to look at her.

"You okay Liz?" Sam asks, his eyes full of concern. He reaches out to brush her hair away from her face.

She nods, troubled. "Dean one of the demons said something about you going to Hell because of a deal? And it keeps playing over and over in my nightmares."

Sam and Dean exchange a look before Dean explains about Azazel and the army of special children. "… And then this guy named Jake stabbed Sammy. And I couldn't live without him," Dean's voice breaks, and he pauses to wipe at his eyes before continuing, "So I made a deal to bring Sammy back to life. I have a few months left before my time is up."

Elizabeth throws off the comforter, marches up to Dean, and slaps him across the face. Her eyes are filled with fury. "How dare you Dean Winchester," she spits, "How dare you do such a thing! You're just going to leave us all behind? How are we supposed to deal with that? What the fuck were you thinking?!"

Sam grabs her waist and leads her back to the bed, her small frame trembling with anger. Dean just stands there, eyes downcast.

"I couldn't lose Sammy," he mumbles.

Elizabeth sits on the bed. Just like that, the fury bleeds out of her body. "I guess I understand. If it was my dad…" she trails off.

"Let's just all go to sleep okay?" Sam suggests. And they do. Sam holds her this time, and it keeps most of the nightmares away.

The next morning as Dean returns the motel key, Elizabeth talks to Sam.

"I'm really sorry about Dean. But um, if you need a place to stay, my door is always open."

Sam looks over at her and smiles sadly. "Thanks for the offer Liz."

Then Dean is back and both boys drive off. She makes sure to give Dean an extra long hug.

_May 3, 2008 – Set just after Season 3, Dean has just gone to Hell_

It's late, but Elizabeth answers the knocking at her door anyway. It's Sam, and he looks like hell. Instinctively, she knows what has happened, so holds out her arms for a hug. Sam collapses into them. She takes him into her room and tucks him into bed, holding him as he cries himself to sleep.

Sam spends a few days just sitting on her couch, barely eating, still processing Dean's death. Finally Elizabeth gives him the ultimatum that he needs to get up and do something or she will call Bobby to come straighten him out. Sam looks at her indignantly but gets off the couch and helps make dinner that night. Elizabeth tries to help him cope, telling him he needs a distraction, but Sam is still caught up in his grief. One night, he decides to go out to a bar and comes home drunk.

"Sam what the fuck. When I said find a distraction, I didn't mean become an alcoholic."

Sam peers at her, then nods. Suddenly, his mouth is on hers and he's crowding her against a wall.

His mouth is hot and the kiss is passionate, but Elizabeth manages to push Sam off of her.

"No Sam. Stop," she gasps as his lips attack her neck, "Sam I mean it. Stop."

"I need a distraction," he murmurs into her skin.

Elizabeth closes her eyes, takes a deep breath, then punches Sam in the stomach. He recoils and gets off her. "I'm not going to be some cheap fuck for you Sam. I don't want that from you."

Sam narrows his eyes, "Well I guess that's it then. I'll go find Ruby."

And with that, he's gone, leaving Elizabeth to wonder if Sam will be okay.

_Late April 2009 – Set towards the end of Season 4_

Dean shows up on her front doorstep towards the end of April. Elizabeth immediately screams and shuts the door in his face. She opens it again to throw holy water on him, but nothing happens. After putting him through the tests to prove he's human, she lets him into her house.

"Where's Sam?"

Dean's face darkens. "He's with that demon whore Ruby. She's got him twisted around her finger and all hopped up on shit. We aren't hunting together."

Elizabeth blinks and holds down her own anger. "Yeah, Ruby. Not a fan of hers. Sam's been an asshole since he started doing whatever it is he does with her."

Dean lets out a bark of laughter. "You're telling me. Anyways, I'm hunting a demon and I could use some help. You busy?"

"Well I have a job, but I have Fridays off, if it can wait a day."

Dean nods. "I need a day to do some research anyway. We've got crazy shit going on."

Elizabeth grins. "When don't you Dean?" Suddenly, she turns serious. "Are you okay though? With everything, you know, Hell, coming back, and all that?"

Dean turns away. "I'm fine Liz."

She drops the subject and they spend the rest of the evening catching up, but strictly avoiding the subjects of Hell and Sam.

On Friday, Dean and Liz drive out to where the demon is supposed to be. Suddenly, there's a rushing sound, and a man in a trenchcoat appears. Liz instinctively fires into his chest, but it does no good.

The man looks exasperated and says, "Why do all of you humans feel the need to do that?"

Dean grins. "Liz this is Castiel, Angel of the Lord and the one who pulled me out of Hell. Cas, this is Elizabeth, a good friend."

The angel, Castiel, cocks his head to the side. "Hello Elizabeth."

"Uh hi, Cas."

Castiel blinks once before turning to Dean. "I need to speak with you for a moment." The two walk a few feet away from Elizabeth and discuss something.

Elizabeth observes the two of them talking, then smiles slyly and calls out, "Wow Dean, I didn't know you played for both teams."

Dean looks over at her, bewildered. "What are you talking about?"

Elizabeth gestures between Dean and Castiel, "Aren't you two together? Because you sure act like it."

"Uh no, absolutely not, nope," Dean splutters. Cas is squinting his eyes at her.

Elizabeth just gives Dean a knowing smile before turning to Cas, "Alright angel boy. Let's go get this demon."

Twenty minutes later, the demon is exorcized. They had found the lone creature and Cas had smited it with relative ease.

"Well that was easier than last time we hunted a demon," Elizabeth remarked.

Dean raises an eyebrow at her. "You mean when you got tied up and tortured? Yeah this was a walk in the park compared to that."

Castiel has vanished off to who knows where, and Dean drives Elizabeth back to her house. She makes to get out of the Impala, but stops with her hand on the handle.

"Dean, I'm sorry I couldn't help Sam, I really did try."

Dean looks over at her. "Don't be sorry sweetheart. He made his own decisions."

Elizabeth laughs bitterly. "Yeah he did, didn't he." And with that she gets out of the car.

She's on her front porch when Dean calls out to her.

"Liz. Listen, uh I know you love hunting, but you need to get out now." She turns around. "What Cas and I have been doing, well we're trying to stop Lucifer from getting out of Hell. The Apocalypse is coming, like the Biblical one, the End of Days, whole deal. And I want you safe and away from the demon hordes that are coming. So just promise that you'll settle down somewhere, be safe, but don't go looking for trouble."

Elizabeth is still for a moment, then nods hesitantly. "Dean? Take care of yourself please."

Dean waves his hand in acknowledgement and drives off.

Months pass, and even though Elizabeth is no longer an active member of the hunter community, she can sense when there's a disturbance in the supernatural world. Her Sight keeps her informed of trouble; it's like she can feel aftershocks, so she knows when Lucifer rises, and when suddenly the Apocalypse is averted. She can't tell the details, or how the Winchesters are involved, but she prays that they are okay. Throughout it all, she keeps her promise to Dean. No more hunting.

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**The main story is coming up soon!**


	2. Present Day

**A/N: And here's the main story. Enjoy!**

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_2013 - Set after the Season 9 mid-season finale._

It's almost time for her lunch break when a guitar riff pierces the air. She looks up from the nurse's station where she is chatting with Christine to where her phone sits in her desk.

"Excuse me for a moment, Christine." Elizabeth walks into her office, shutting the door behind her. She hasn't heard _that_ ringtone in a while, not since – no she won't let herself think about it. Feeling sure it was a mistake, Elizabeth takes her secondary cell phone out of her purse and stares at it.

_"1 Missed Call – Dean Winchester"_

Elizabeth still can't believe that Dean would be calling her. They fell out of touch when he was dealing with stopping Lucifer from rising. That had been over four years ago. Since then, she had taken Dean's advice of getting out of the hunting business, though she still saw quite a few hunters at her job. Since opening a practice with one of her MD friends, she had a steady stream of clients that made up quite a large chunk of the hunter pool. She didn't mind helping her fellow hunters out, and it made her glad that she still had a connection to the community that protected the world.

Elizabeth was pulled from her reverie by the same familiar guitar riff. Taking a deep breath she answered the call.

"Elizabeth O'Malley, Physician's Assistant. How may I help you?"

"Liz?" Dean's voice crackled through the speaker, "Liz are you in a place where you can listen? I have something important to ask you."

"One second Dean." Elizabeth poked her head out of her office to find that it was empty, as everyone had gone to lunch. "Okay go ahead."

Dean sighed. "I'm really sorry to do this to you. I know I told you to get out of the hunting business as much as possible, but I really need your help."

Something was definitely wrong; she could tell by Dean's voice. "Dean, what's wrong?"

Dean took a deep breath before responding. "Do you remember hearing about that meteor shower a few weeks ago? Well it wasn't a meteor shower. There was a bad angel, Metatron, and he expelled all the angels from heaven. Meanwhile Sammy was undergoing a series of trials to close the Gates of Hell, and he almost died. So I let an angel inside him to heal him. Only this angel wasn't who he said he was; he turned out to be bad. He used Sam's body to kill Kevin, our prophet, and now he's gone off with Sam's body. Now Cas and I found Sam, and we are going to have Crowley cast the angel out –"

"Wait Crowley? As in the King of Hell?" Elizabeth interrupted.

"What? Oh yeah. Crowley, the King of Hell. Now the thing is that Sam's body may not be healed so is it possible for me to come pick you up and bring you to our bunker so you can check out Sam and make sure he's okay? And, y'know, fix him up if he isn't?"

Elizabeth thinks for a moment. "You have to come pick me up from work. I have lunch break for about an hour, and I can leave early today."

Dean tells her that he will pick her up at 3 pm from the clinic. Instead of going to lunch, Elizabeth walks home quickly, hoping that her fiancé isn't home so that he won't see her pack an overnight bag. She makes it back to her office ten minutes before lunch ends, and fills out paperwork notifying the office that she will be away due to a family emergency. She works the rest of the day watching the clock. Finally, it's 3, and she almost runs out of the building. She stops when she sees the shiny black Impala and the man leaning against it. He seems lost in misery, but it's the same Dean Winchester that she knew.

She quickly walks over and throws her arms around him, and he promptly returns the hug. They get in the car and start driving, making small talk, but Elizabeth can feel the weight of recent events on Dean's shoulders.

"Dean," she begins, "I didn't know Kevin, but it's not your fault he's dead. I know you convinced Sam to let the angel in, but you were trying to save him. I would've done the same. I wouldn't want to lose him either."

Dean looks over at Elizabeth. "No Liz. This one is on me. Kevin's blood is on my hands, no matter how you cut it. I just had to save Sam though. I can't imagine doing this without him."

Elizabeth pats Dean's arm, her engagement ring catching the light.

Dean whistles, "Well that's a hell of a rock. Who's the lucky guy?"

"His name is Nathan. He's a business partner at a stocks company. We started dating right after I quit hunting and we've been engaged for almost a year now."

Dean turns to Elizabeth, an eyebrow raised. "Really Liz?"

"He's a decent guy. And stable," she replies a bit defensively.

Dean shrugs, "How do you think Sammy is gonna feel about that?"

Elizabeth looks out the window. "I gave up any hope for the two of us after Ruby," her voice catches.

Dean just looks at her sympathetically as the road flies beneath the Impala's wheels.

When Elizabeth and Dean get to the bunker, he shows her to Kevin's old room and then leaves to join Cas and Crowley in ejecting Gadreel from Sam's body. Elizabeth just unpacks the few things she brought with her and settles in to wait for the boys' return.

After a few hours, she hears noises from Sam's room across the hall, and suddenly Dean is calling for her.

"Liz, come here. What's wrong with him?"

Elizabeth goes running across the hall with her med kit. She takes Sam's vitals, then turns to Dean and Castiel.

"His vitals aren't strong. You needed to take him to a hospital like 5 minutes ago."

Castiel just walks past her and lays a hand on Sam's forehead before turning back to Dean and Elizabeth.

"I have healed Sam physically, but he will not wake until his body has dealt with his memories and experiences. Gadreel forced Sam's consciousness to the side while possessing him, and he will have to process everything in order to remember who he is."

Dean looked down at the still form of his brother sleeping on the bed. "Well how long is that going to take?"

"Unfortunately I do not know. But there is nothing we can do for him until he wakes."

Elizabeth looks up from where she's checking Sam's vitals again. "He's going to need water and nutrients. You're going to have to take him to the hospital so he can get an IV."

Dean looks over at her. "Liz, if I can get you what you need, can you set it up here?"

She thinks for a moment. "I should be able to. If I had the right equipment. Which is extremely expensive. Which you cannot afford or get."

Dean looks her in the eye. "I never said anything about paying for it," he says before striding out of the room.

And if Dean appears with Castiel and the necessary equipment during the morning news reporting a developing story regarding a local hospital and how several thousand dollars of equipment was mysteriously stolen, well Elizabeth doesn't comment on it.

Five days pass and Sam is still locked inside his head. Dean is restless, so Elizabeth makes Castiel take him out to find a hunt, promising to call if Sam wakes.

Another day passes, but there is not much change except that Sam has started talking in his sleep. It starts as incoherent mumbling, but soon it turns into full on screaming fits and Elizabeth has to restrain him. She still sits with him and holds his hand, but the things she hears make her realize that a lot has happened to Sam since she last saw him.

"No. Stop. I don't want it any more. I stopped drinking it."

Elizabeth just sits on the bed next to him and pushes the hair away from Sam's forehead.

A few hours later the screams turn into broken whimpers of, "No please stop. Please don't touch me. Just leave me alone. You're all in my head. Just stop touching me. You aren't real. You aren't real. You aren't real. Go away."

Finally, Sam is too hoarse to shout, but Elizabeth can hear him mumbling to himself.

"They're purifying me." Sam whispers before his eyes flutter open and he screams, "KEVIN," pulling at the restraints that kept him from convulsing.

Elizabeth quickly undoes the straps and lets Sam curl in on himself, rubbing his back and speaking to him in a soothing voice as he cries. Finally, he looks up.

"Liz?" he asks in a hoarse voice, "Why are you here?"

"Dean asked me to come help. He wasn't sure whether you would need medical attention. Be careful that you don't rip out your IV, by the way. I'll remove it in a minute if you'll sit back."

Sam does as she requests, then asks, "How long was I out for?"

"Almost a week," Elizabeth replies before going on to explain that the reason he had been unconscious was because of the angel possessing him and how he had to sort through his memories.

"And you were here the whole time?"

Elizabeth nods.

"And did… did I really kill Kevin?"

Elizabeth turns to him, "You talked about that in your coma. But no. You did not kill Kevin. Gadreel, the angel that possessed you did. It's not your fault Sam."

Sam pales at her words. "I talked in my sleep? What did I say?" he asked, moving to sit at the edge of the bed.

"Um a lot of things."

Sam grabs her hand and pulls her to stand in front of him. "Please Liz," he said softly, "I need to know what you heard."

Elizabeth sighs. "You were reliving the events in your head. You talked about Kevin and about being purified. You kept screaming for the longest time about someone not being real but they wouldn't stop touching you. And I had to start restraining you when you were shouting about not wanting to drink something," she's whispering now, lost inside her own head as she recalls Sam's fevered skin and pained expressions, "I don't know what it was you were remembering, but it seemed painful."

Sam looks down at his hands, ashamed.

Elizabeth pats his cheek before moving to leave the room. "I'm going to go call Dean. He was driving me crazy, so I made him go on a hunt. I'll grab you something to eat as well."

When she returns, Sam is still sitting on the edge of the bed, but he is now holding his head in his hands.

"Are you okay Sam?"

He looks up. "Fine. I just… I never wanted you to find out about what I've done."

"It's not like I understood it anyways."

Sam pats the bed next to him. "Might as well explain it. Just don't interrupt please."

Elizabeth cautiously sits next to Sam as he begins his narrative.

"After we had our falling out over Ruby, I started drinking demon blood. I thought it was helping me become stronger because I was one of the "special children" that were infected with demon blood at birth. I've never been clean you see. But I found that I could kill demons quicker after drinking demon blood. But it was extremely addictive. I had to detox twice. But then some hunters wanted me to drink demon blood, and I refused, so they force fed it to me. I also was responsible for setting Lucifer free and starting the whole Apocalypse mess, which was when Dean came to visit you with Cas and told you to get out of the hunting business. Well Dean and I are the true vessels of the Archangel Michael and Lucifer, respectively. So I let Lucifer possess me; somehow I regained control and I was able to jump into the cage that held him in hell. I was in hell, and then Cas pulled me out. But he accidentally left my soul behind. Dean made a deal with Death to get my soul back, but my memories of hell were blocked off. Long story short, the wall blocking off those memories came down and I kind of went crazy, thinking that Lucifer was there… and… and he wouldn't leave me alone…" Sam's voice broke, and he started shaking with the memory of what had happened.

Elizabeth grabs his hand. "It's okay. You don't have to finish."

Sam shakes his head. "Then Kevin. He was a prophet and he found a way to close the Gates of Hell permanently. The Demon Trials. I underwent them, and I got really sick. Almost died, but Liz, I was purifying myself from all the terrible things that I had done, purifying myself of the horrible person that I am. I've been unclean since I was a child. The trials almost killed me. And you know everything else after that." Sam removes his hand from yours. "I'll understand if you don't want to be near me."

Elizabeth stands up in front of him. "Samuel Winchester," she whispers, "Don't you dare think for a second that I would judge you for that. We all have things we are ashamed of."

Sam looks up. "Oh really? What could you possibly be ashamed of Liz? Don't give me that."

Elizabeth takes in a deep breath to steady herself before she takes off her tshirt. The action shocks Sam, but before he can comment, she takes his hands and guides them to her sides. He looks confused but then feels the ridges still carved into her skin.

He looks at her blankly, "Why?"

"One cut for each person I failed to save. I used to hate myself. I stopped eating for a while, telling myself that if I was skinnier then I would be faster and better able to save people. Then I met this one girl. She died in my arms, but she was an empath. She knew about the cutting and my eating disorder. And I'll never forget what she told me. She said, 'Hurting yourself won't help other people. You feel guilt, so turn that into positive energy. You can't save other people if you can't save yourself.' And I decided to change because she was right."

Elizabeth notes that Sam hasn't removed his hands off her waist, and that he's lightly tracing her scars.

She speaks again, "Honestly, I don't know how you do it. I would be so messed up if that had happened to me. I wouldn't trust anyone or let anyone touch me. Not to say that I don't have my own problems, but what you've been through… You are so strong, Sam. You are brave, and strong, and a good man."

Sam just leans his head forward onto her shoulders and Elizabeth hugs him and kisses the top of his head.

They stand like this for a few minutes before Sam mumbles, "I like this. I like having you in my arms."

Elizabeth pulls back and whispers, "Sam… you have to know… I'm engaged." She holds up her hand to show off the ring.

Sam removes his arms from her waist. "Oh. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be forward."

"It's.. fine. Now let's get you up. You need to walk around a little after being catatonic for so long."

Sam is too weak to walk by himself, so Elizabeth props him up and helps him walk to the kitchen so she can prepare dinner for when Dean will get home. Despite their physical closeness, she can sense a distance between them now that Sam knows she is engaged. It saddens her to feel the reserved air emanating from Sam, but there's nothing she can do about it. Things get better when Dean and Cas arrive back at the bunker. Soon the halls are filled with laughter and stories as the four friends catch up.

Elizabeth stays for a few more days until Sam can walk on his own, but then she asks Dean to take her home.

"I've been away for two weeks, and I really need to get back to work and Nathan."

Elizabeth says her goodbyes, and if her hug with Sam lingers for more than it ought, well she doesn't complain one bit. She always liked being in Sam's arms. They made her feel safe.

She waves once as the Impala pulls out of the bunker's garage. All too soon Dean pulls up to Nathan's house.

He makes to get out of the car, but Elizabeth grabs his arm.

"Dean, um, please stay here. In the car. Nathan won't like it that I've been gone for two weeks and it'll be worse if he knows I was with a guy."

Dean narrows his eyes but allows Elizabeth to walk up to the house alone. She doesn't look back, so he cuts off the Impala's engine and decides to wait for a moment. A few minutes later, he hears raised voices and, suddenly, the sound of breaking glass. He vaults out of the car and bursts through the door to find Elizabeth wide-eyed against a wall and Nathan across the room holding another glass.

"Liz, are you okay? Are you hurt?"

"Who the hell is this, _Liz_ honey?" Nathan sneers, "Is this your lover? Is this who you've been fucking these past two weeks while I've been alone?"

"No baby," Elizabeth pleads, "He's an old friend and I was away helping his brother because his brother was really sick. I swear baby I would never…"

Elizabeth is cut off by Nathan backhanding her across the face. He had moved towards her while she was speaking to him, and now his slap jarred her. She raises her hand to her face, feeling blood running from her lip.

Dean immediately moves from the doorway to tackle Nathan, before punching him into unconsciousness and turning back to Elizabeth.

He holds up his hands to be as non-threatening as possible. "Hey, Liz, are you okay?"

"He hit me."

"Yeah I know sweetheart. Let's go pack some of your things and then get out of here."

Elizabeth nods, eyes still vacant, and then walks slowly off to gather her things. She looks around the room that she and Nathan had shared for the past three and a half years. There was nothing here that she wanted, not even her clothes. She has no use for dresses and such, and she doesn't want the reminder either. Instead, she pulls out her backpack from her hunting days and packs her laptop, her gun, a pair of jeans, a few t-shirts, and some track shorts. She dresses in her steel-toe boots, another pair of jeans, a t-shirt, and her charcoal grey hoodie. She tucks her knife into her left boot and then quickly braids her hair into a tight plait before walking back out to where Dean was.

While she had been packing, Dean had taken the liberty of tying Nathan's unconscious body to a chair.

When Dean sees her wardrobe change, he breaks out into a wide grin. "Well look at you. It suits you better."

Elizabeth just nods before saying, "I have the keys to my old Jeep. It's a few hours away in Concordia at a shop. One of my old friends has a garage and lets me store it there. Nathan didn't want me to drive it. But it has my old hunting stuff and more of my clothes in there."

Dean nods, "That's fine, but we can get it another time. I'm taking you back to the bunker first."

An hour later, they arrive back at the bunker. Much to everyone's surprise, Elizabeth has returned. Dean helps her in before looking at Sam.

"Sammy, I'll be back later."

Sam looks confused, his gaze darting from Dean's furious expression to the bruise starting to form on Elizabeth's face. "Dean? What's going on?"

"That son of a bitch hit Liz. I knocked him out and tied him up before bringing her back here. And now I'm gonna go beat the shit out of him."

Elizabeth grabs Dean's arm. "No, please don't do that. It's unnecessary."

Dean shakes Elizabeth off before leaving, Sam holding her back.

"Wait Dean," Elizabeth calls out, "Take this with you. You can sell it." She hands Dean her engagement ring and he leaves.

"Shhh Liz. It will be okay. Are you okay?" Sam murmurs into Elizabeth's hair.

Elizabeth turns around, burying her face into Sam's chest, feeling the warm, solid safety his arms always bring. "He hit me. I can't believe it. I mean, he used to get angry about stupid things, but I didn't think he would ever hit me."

Sam pulls at her chin to get her to look up. He examines her jaw and determines that she will be fine. "I'm so sorry Liz. If you don't mind me asking, why did you stay with him?"

Elizabeth flushes and looks down. "He wasn't always like that. He was kind… he changed I guess."

Sam cups her face and traces her bruised cheekbone with his thumb. "You should know that you're worth more than that."

Elizabeth looks up at Sam, finding his beautiful hazel eyes, before Sam bends down to kiss her. His mouth is hot and wet and it ignites a passion she hasn't felt in years. She wraps her arms around his neck, and Sam pulls her flush against his body. He bites her lip softly, pulling his face back when she hisses in pain.

"Oh I'm so sorry. I forgot that your lip is busted," Sam stammers out, quickly letting go of her, "And uh, I shouldn't have kissed you. I'm sorry."

Elizabeth shakes her head, "It's fine. I haven't been kissed like that in a long time. But, it was a bit premature don't you think?"

Sam ducks his head, blushing, before tugging on her arm. "C'mon let's get you settled."

Elizabeth follows Sam through the library, down the hall, to a doorway. He opens it to reveal a small room with a bathroom attached to it.

Suddenly, Sam's phone rings. "Hello? Okay thanks Dean."

Elizabeth turns and looks quizzically at Sam.

"Dean called Cas and had him mojo your jeep to the garage here. So all your stuff is here now. I'll help you bring it in."

Elizabeth smiles. "Thank you Sam."

Two trips later, all of Elizabeth's worldly possessions are safely in her room and Sam leaves her alone to unpack and process all that had changed in the past few hours.

As Elizabeth unpacks her clothes into the small set of drawers, she thinks about what Dean had said. She did look better in her hunter's clothes. It was where she belonged. Not to say that her medical background wasn't a good thing, but the life she had had with Nathan just didn't suit her; there was something missing. There were a few shelves in her room, so Elizabeth uses them to store the few books that she had with her, as well as a few photos of her and her father or her and Jo. Finally, Elizabeth places her laptop into the top drawer of her nightstand and her cigar box holding her letters and other photos into the drawer beneath it.

Looking around her room and feeling satisfied, she slips out to the library where Sam is immersed in a book. He looks up when he hears her footsteps approaching.

"All settled in?"

She nods and tries to hug him again, but this time Sam shies away from her touch. Elizabeth notes the change in his mood, but doesn't quite know what to say to remedy the situation. Instead she goes with, "I think I'm going to head to sleep now. It's been a long day."

Sam nods and she leaves. She changes into track shorts before slipping into bed. Three hours later, Elizabeth is still awake. She's grown used to having another person beside her in bed.

Sam and Dean leave her alone for the next few days, making sure she eats, but generally letting her keep to herself. She spends a lot of time in the firing range when she gets restless or in the library when the boys are asleep. After three days in the bunker with barely any sleep, Elizabeth manages to get four hours of rest before she awakens disoriented. Knowing sleep won't come back easily, Elizabeth slips out of her room. Across the hall is Sam's room, and she quietly knocks on the door. A few moments later, Sam opens his door, his hair slightly disheveled and clad in only his boxers.

"What do you need Liz?" he asks brusquely.

Elizabeth looks down at her feet. "Ah, well it's dumb now that I'm here… but I've gotten used to having someone in the bed with me while I sleep. And I haven't been sleeping very well. Do you think… maybe… could I?"

Sam sighs and gestures to his bed, "Come on in."

They climb into bed and turn so that their backs are barely touching.

"Thank you Sam. Goodnight."

"Goodnight Liz. Sweet dreams."

They both fall into silence, and eventually, sleep. Elizabeth wakes up a few hours later to find Sam curled around her, holding her tightly. She finds that she doesn't mind it as much as she thought she would. Elizabeth snuggles back into Sam's warmth and reflects on the past few years. Though she had a brief connection with Dean, she has felt an undertone of attraction in her relationship with Sam. And apparently he had too, if their kiss was anything to go by.

"You know, I wouldn't mind a relationship with Sam," she thinks to herself before closing her eyes and letting sleep find her.

She wakes to fingers running through her hair and her face pressed into Sam's chest. He is laying on his back and her arm is flung across his torso. Elizabeth opens her eyes and looks up at Sam.

"Good morning Liz."

"Good morning Sam," Elizabeth replies, then leans up to kiss him on the lips.

Sam pulls back surprised. "I thought… didn't you want to wait?"

Elizabeth sits up. "I did… at first. But then I got to thinking. We've been dancing around this," she gestures between the two of them, "for a while now, and I think we should give it a try. I haven't really felt like I've been in a relationship with Nathan for almost two years now. So I'm ready if you are."

Sam pushes the comforter down and stands up, facing away from Elizabeth. "I was in the heat of the moment that night. But now I'm not. I've told you my past. You know that anyone I get close to gets hurt in the end."

Elizabeth stood up and walked around to face Sam. She cupped his face before saying, "I don't care. It's better to have loved and lost, than never to have loved at all. And I want this chance with you. Please."

Sam took a deep breath, then twisted his head to kiss Elizabeth's right palm. He wrapped his arms around her and buried his face in her hair. "I can't lose you. I've known you for so long, and I really care about you. If I were to lose you… I don't know. I just don't know," he whispers into her hair.

"Hey look at me... Samuel Winchester! Listen to me. I am a hunter. I can take care of myself. Regardless of that, I know that you, Dean, and Cas have my back. You won't lose me. I promise."

Sam shook his head, then kissed the top of her head. "Okay. We can try."

He smiled down at her as she stood on her tip toes to kiss his nose.

"Okay I'm going to get dressed. I'll meet you in the kitchen?"

Sam nodded and Elizabeth slipped out of his room. A few minutes later, Sam found her in the kitchen making pancakes and eggs.

"Breakfast in ten Sammy. Go wake up Dean and Cas please."

He kissed her on the lips before heading out of the kitchen. When Elizabeth heard some yelling coming from Dean's room, she couldn't fight the smile that spread across her face. She turned around to see Cas slinking in before sitting down and putting his head on the table.

Elizabeth brings over a mug of coffee and rubs Cas's back. "Here ya go Cas. Up and at 'em."

Cas just downs the coffee and puts his head back on the table. Elizabeth pours him more coffee just as Dean makes his grand entrance with Sam right behind him. Dean plops down at the table loudly.

"Why am I up at this godforsaken hour Liz?" Dean whines.

"Because," Elizabeth replies calmly from the stove, "I made breakfast." She brings plates of pancakes, bacon, and eggs to the table and passes the food around.

Dean rolls his eyes but digs into the plate of food set in front of him. The others follow suit. After the meal, Cas offers to do the dishes, and Elizabeth lets him. As she rises from the table, she pecks Sam on the lips and sashays out of the kitchen with an evil grin on her face.

"Let Sam deal with _that_ one," she thinks as she hears the clamor of voices coming from the kitchen.

A few minutes later, Sam walks into her room, pushes her against the wall, and kisses her earnestly.

"Thanks for letting me handle that on my own," he murmurs against her lips.

Elizabeth chuckles and kisses him again. "How did he take it?"

"He was teasing me for a bit," Sam admits, "And then he got serious. He told me not to fuck this up."

Elizabeth wraps her arms around Sam's neck and kisses his chest. "You won't. I won't let you."

Sam pulls back and raises an eyebrow. "Oh really?"

"Yes really."

Sam huffed and then kissed Elizabeth on the nose. "Okay then," he hesitates, "You'll stay then?"

Elizabeth kissed him soundly before replying, "For as long as you want."

* * *

**Please read and review! I will be continuing this story in a series of related one shots. You can send me prompt ideas if you want :)**


	3. Author's Note

Hey lovely people! My series of oneshots has been started under the name of "The Bunker Oneshots". You can find it on my page. Enjoy!


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